Protecting Katie
by yellowrose900
Summary: Half a million dollars worth of diamonds are stolen from a jewelry store, and then Neal finds them in the possession of a  three-year-old little girl sitting on a park bench.
1. Chapter 1

Protecting Katie

Summary: Half a million dollars worth of diamonds are stolen from a jewelry store, and then Neal finds them in the possession of a three-year-old little girl sitting on a park bench.

Warning: A couple curse words and mild violence.

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Neal and Peter walked into a large jewelry store that had been robbed the night before, the forensics team were already there.

"Mr. Grant." Peter greeted, walking over to a middle aged man. "I am Agent Peter Burke, this is Neal Caffrey."

"Hello." The man returned the greeting. His voice was strained and he looked as if he was about to pass out.

"Can you tell us what happened?" Peter asked.

"I locked up last night at around eleven." He said. "Then I came back at nine this morning and discovered that the back door was open, so I phoned the police. After they arrived and made sure no one was still inside, they asked me to take inventory to see if anything had been taken. That's when I noticed that the diamonds were missing."

"And only the diamonds from that one collection was gone?" Peter asked.

"Yes. Please, you must find them. If not, I am responsible for the half a million dollars."

"Weren't they insured?" Neal asked.

"No, they only arrived yesterday morning."

"Where did they come from?" Peter asked.

"From the private collection of Edward Fuller."

"The same Edward Fuller who died in a yachting accident last month?" Neal asked.

"Yes, his family auctioned them off. But I have not paid for them yet, I was supposed to arrange for the bank draft today, after I properly examined them."

"Who handled the auction?" Peter asked.

"Maureen Collins, she handles many of the higher valued items that are to be auctioned."

"Did anyone else know that the diamonds were here?" Peter asked, "Any employees or customers that found out?"

"Only my son Ronald."

"How were they displayed?" Neal asked.

"They weren't. They were in a purple satin pouch in a glass case behind the counter. I bought them to use in making jewelry. I figured I could double, maybe even triple my profit if I turned them into necklaces and earrings."

After asking a few more questions and looking around, Peter and Neal left the store and got into Peter's car.

"What are you thinking?" Peter asked, as he pulled into traffic.

"That maybe Edward Fuller's family pulled a switch and didn't want anyone to know." Neal replied.

"That's one theory." Peter agreed. "Or maybe Maureen Collins pulled the switch."

"No way." Neal said, a slight smile on his face. "Maureen wouldn't do that."

"You know her?" Peter asked, giving the younger man a sideways glance.

"Meet her a few years ago."

"And what did this meeting consist of?"

"Let's just say she's not one to bend the rules."

"So you tried to con her and failed." Peter said, with a smirk.

"I did not fail." Neal defended himself. "I just didn't succeed."

"I want to check her out anyway; someone more charming then you might have convinced her to bend those rules."

"There is no one more charming then me."

/

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Three hours later, Peter and Neal still had no leads. The Fuller family checked out, none of the family members were in need of money and none had criminal records. Maureen Collins also checked out. She was a single mother of a three-year-old daughter; her husband had died in a fire the year before. She wasn't no where near rich, but she wasn't hurting for money and had no criminal record.

"I need a break." Neal said, standing up and stretching. Him and Peter had been sitting in Peter's office for over an hour going over paperwork. "How about we break for lunch?"

"Be back in an hour." Peter said, still reading a file.

"You're not coming?"

"I'm meeting Elle in a few minutes."

"Alright, see you in an hour." Neal grabbed his hat and left the office.

A few minutes later, Neal was walking through Central Park enjoying the fresh air and sunshine. He walked to a nearly deserted part of the park and heard a soft sniffling sound. Turning towards the sound, he saw a little girl sitting on a park bench. She had brown curly hair that cascaded down her back and was wearing pink shorts and matching shirt. She had her head down and was crying. Neal looked around, but saw no one nearby.

"Hey there, little one." He said softly as he slowly walked over. He didn't want to frighten the young girl. She looked up with tear filled brown eyes and scooted back further in fear.

"It's okay, Sweetheart." Neal said, with a smile. "My name's Neal, I won't hurt you."

He slowly sat beside her on the bench and she turned and looked at him. She was still crying.

"Watch this." Neal said, as he pulled his handkerchief from his pocket. He hid it in his fist, then opened his hand and the handkerchief was gone. "Where did it go?" Neal asked with wide eyes. The little girl stopped crying and looked at him with interest. "Hey I see it." He said, reaching out and pulling the handkerchief from behind her ear. She thought it was funny and started laughing.

"That's better." Neal smiled.

"Again." She said, shyly.

"Okay." Neal once again made the handkerchief disappear then reappear behind he ear, causing her to laugh again.

"Are you lost?" Neal asked. "Where's Mommy and Daddy?"

"Mommy hurt." She said, her smile gone.

"Mommy's hurt?" Neal asked.

The little girl nodded. "Bad man hurt Mommy."

"Where at?" Neal asked softly.

"No know."

"What's your name?"

"Katie."

"That's a pretty name." Neal said, as he stood up. He feared that the young girl's Mom was the victim of a kidnapper or a rapist. He knew he had to get her to the police station so they could find her. "Come with me." He held out his hand.

Katie looked at him, then smiled and took his hand. Neal started to lead her away, when she stopped walking. "Wait." She said, pulling her small hand from Neal's much larger one. She ran back to the bench and grabbed a purple satin pouch from the ground beside it. Then she ran back to Neal. "Ready."

"Can I see that?" Neal asked, reaching for the pouch. Surly finding the diamonds couldn't be that easy. And what was a kid doing with them?

"Mine." She said, holding them behind her back and looking at Neal with a stubborn expression.

"I'll show you another trick." Neal knelt in front of her and pulled his handkerchief out again. He once again made it disappear then reappear, and Katie once again thought it was real funny.

"Can I see that?" Neal asked, pointing to the purple satin pouch. "I'll make it disappear."

She nodded her head and handed it to him, with a huge smile.

Neal opened the pouch and poured a few diamonds out into his hand, they looked very real to him.

"Pretty rocks." Katie said. "Shiny."

"Yes." Neal said, replacing the diamonds. "Very shiny." He knew he had just found Maureen Collins' daughter. She favored her Mom a lot. "Where did you get them?"

"My house." Then she pointed to them. "Make go bye bye."

"Yes Ma'am." Neal said, wrapping them in his handkerchief. With a quick flip of the wrist, he put the diamonds safely into his suite pocket. Then opened his hand to show the little girl that they were gone.

She laughed, and then said. "Make come back."

"Can't Honey, they're bye bye."

Her bottom lip quivered and Neal knew she was about to cry.

"How about some ice cream?" He asked, spotting an ice cream cart a few yards away.

"Okay." She smiled, the diamonds forgotten.

/

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Neal soon learned that ice cream, a little kid, and his suit did not mix well. Katie seemed to have more ice cream on her face, hands, and clothes then she managed to get inside of her mouth.

He had began the short walk back to the bureau carrying her, but after a blob of chocolate ice cream fall from the cone and onto his shoulder, he had put her down and let her walk while holding his hand. No more ice cream landed on his clothes, but his hand was extremely sticky.

/

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Peter and Elle were sitting on a bench in front of the bureau, eating sandwiches and talking.

"Peter." Elizabeth said, looking up in confusion. "Why does Neal have a little girl walking with him?"

Peter looked up and saw them. "No idea." Then when Neal and the little girl reached them, he asked. "Where'd the kid come from, Neal?"

"Peter." Neal said. "Your Father should have had that talk with you a long time ago."

"Very funny, now answer the question."

"Peter, Elle." Neal said. "Meet Katie Collins."

"As in Maureen Collins' daughter?" Peter asked, in surprise.

"Yes." He pulled the purple pouch from his pocket and showed them to Peter. "She had these on her."

"Elle." Peter started, but his wife cut him off.

"Come on, Honey." Elle said, offering the little girl her hand. "Why don't we go get you cleaned up?"

Elle and Katie walked off into the building and Neal explained what had happened to Peter.

/

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A little while later, Peter and Neal were at Maureen Collins' apartment. The place was a mess.

"Someone was definitely looking for something." Peter said.

"You think they forced Maureen into stealing the diamonds?" Neal asked.

"Looks like it, I don't think she did it on her own. Nothing in her background suggests it."

"I wonder how Katie wind up with them." Neal said.

"Speaking of Katie, we need to pack her a bag."

"What do we pack?"

"Clothes, toys, stuff like that."

They found the girl's room, which was also trashed.

"Kid likes pink." Neal said, almost everything in the room was pink.

"Pack a bag; I'm going to call in a forensics team."

Neal looked around and found a small pink duffle bag with a cartoon princess on it. He quickly filled it with clothes and toys. Then he saw a picture of Maureen, Katie, and a man. Katie was around two and was sitting on the man's shoulders. Neal put the picture into the bag as well.

/

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Across the street from Maureen's apartment building, two men were sitting in a car.

"The Boss won't like this." The driver said. "If we're right and the brat had the diamonds, then that means that the Feds have them."

"We have to get them back, and the kid." The other man said.

"How?"

"By killing anyone who gets in our way, even the Feds."

"I agree with killing the Feds, but she's just a little girl."

"A little girl who saw us kidnap her Mom." The driver hissed. "She can ID us, she dies too."

"Okay." The other man reluctantly agreed. "What about her Mom?"

"Maureen dies too, after we're done with her."

/

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I will have the next chapter posted as soon as I can. Please let me know what you think.


	2. Chapter 2

I want to thank everyone for the kind reviews and the alerts. Hope you like this one too.

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Peter and Neal walked into Peter's office and saw that Elizabeth and Katie were there. Elle was sitting in a chair in front of his desk and Katie was laying in the floor on her stomach drawing on a piece of paper. She was wearing an FBI tee-shirt that hung loosely from her small body.

"Neal." Katie said, smiling as she jumped up and rushed to the man.

"Hey Katie." Neal returned the smile.

"Is that Katie's clothes?" Elizabeth asked, nodding towards the duffle bag.

"Yes." Neal replied.

"Come on, Honey and we'll get you some clothes on that fits." Elle said, picking the girl and the duffle bag up.

"Okay." She said. "Bye Neal."

"Bye Sweetheart."

Elle and Katie left the office.

"She likes you." Peter said, as he sat down.

"All females like me." Neal smirked. Then the smirk disappeared. "What's going to happen to Katie?"

"I already called social services, we're supposed to take her to their office."

"Social services?" Neal didn't like the sound of that. "You want to drop her off with a bunch of strangers?"

"Neal, we're strangers too. She has no relatives, and we are not a babysitting service."

"But she's just a little kid."

"And social services know what to do with little kids."

"Yeah, you're right." Neal reluctantly agreed. "We need to focus on finding on her Mom."

"Just remember that it is a possibility that her Mom is not a victim here, she could be involved."

"No way."

"Look, right now I agree with you." Peter said. "It appears more like she was an unwilling accomplish. But we have to keep an open mind about this, we have to look at it from all aspects."

"Okay."

The door opened and Elle and Katie walked back in. The little girl was now wearing a pink dress and matching shoes. Her hair was tied back into a loose ponytail with a pink ribbon. Katie was holding a stuffed teddy bear.

"Who's your friend?" Neal asked her, nodding towards the bear.

"Bear." She said, hugging it tightly to her chest.

"It's time to take her to social services." Peter said, standing up.

"Social services?" Elle asked.

"I've already had this conversation with Neal." Peter said, kissing her. "It's the best place for her while we figure out what's going in."

"Okay." She said, kissing him back.

"Yuck." Katie said, scrunching up her nose.

"Remember that in ten years, Sweetheart." Neal said, picking her up.

"I've got to get back to work." Elle said. She hugged the small girl and said, "Bye bye, Katie."

"Bye bye."

Elle left the office, then the two men and little girl left. The nearest social service office was only two blocks away, so they decided to walk.

"Down." Katie said, squirming in Neal's arms.

"You want to walk?" Neal asked, about to set her on her feet.

"Don't" Peter said.

"What is it?" Neal asked.

"That black car has been following us since we left the bureau." Peter replied. "Just keep walking, but stay alert."

"Okay." Neal wrapped his arm more tightly around the girl.

"Down." She said again, more insistent.

"Not right now, Katie." Neal said.

"Gun!" Peter shouted, as he saw the car pull up alongside them and then saw the barrel of a gun sticking out from the window.

Neal dove to he ground, keeping Katie under him. Peter drew his weapon just as the gunshots started. Peter had no cover as he returned fire. But the gunman wasn't aiming at him, he was aiming at Neal and Katie.

The gunfire only lasted a few seconds, and then the car sped away. Peter stepped into the street and fired two more shots, one taking out the back windshield, the other taking out the left taillight. Then he rushed to Neal and Katie, who were still on the ground. HE could hear Katie crying.

"Neal." He said, knelling beside him. The younger man's shoulder was bleeding.

Neal raised to his knees, on hand clutching his injured shoulder. He looked down at the crying little girl. Peter helped her to her feet and started checking her for injuries.

"She hurt?' Neal asked.

"No, just scared." Peter replied.

"Who were they?" Neal wanted to know.

"No idea, but they were aiming for Katie."

"What kind of bastard would try to kill a three-year-old?"

"That's what we are going to find out." Peter said, wrapping the frightened child into his arms. He heard the distant wail of sirens getting closer. "You okay, Neal?"

"I think so, the bullet went straight through."

/

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An hour later, Peter and Neal were once again in Peter's office. Neal's right arm was in a sling. They heard loud crying coming from outside the office.

"Katie." Neal said, as he jumped up and rushed from the room. Peter was right behind him. They say the little girl standing in the middle of the room downstairs. She had her small arms crossed across her chest and was wailing at the top of her lungs.

"Want Mommy!" She shouted, stomping her foot.

Jones and Diana were trying to calm her down, but not having much luck.

"Hey Sweetheart." Neal said, as he rushed down the stairs and over to the distraught little girl. "It's okay."

"Want Mommy!" She insisted, tears pouring down her flushed face.

"Someone give me a business card." Neal said, knelling in front of the girl. Jones handed him a card.

"Look, Katie." Neal said, showing her the card. Then he made it disappear. Katie was watching him, and her crying had lessened. But she was still crying. "I need a quarter." Neal said. Peter quickly handed him a quarter.

"Watch this." Neal said, showing her the quarter. Then he made it disappear. Neal then reached behind her ear and pulled out the quarter. Katie stopped crying and grabbed her ear.

"Again." She said.

Neal again made the coin disappear then reappear behind her ear, this time causing the girl to laugh.

"Now that's better." Neal said, pulling his handkerchief out and gently wiping her face.

Katie yawned and said. "Where Mommy?"

"We'll find her Honey." Neal said, wrapping his arms around her. She clung to him tightly and yawned again.

"I think someone needs a nap." Peter said.

"No nap." Katie said.

"How about if I tell you a story?" Neal said, standing up with her still in his arms.

"Okay."

"You can lay her down on the couch in my office." Hughes said.

"Thanks." Neal carried her up stairs and into Hughes office.

"He's good with kids." Hughes remarked.

"I guess it takes one to know one." Diana replied. But she was impressed with Neal's abilities with kids.

/

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A few minutes later, Peter walked into Hughes office and had to smile at the sight. Katie was sound asleep on the sofa, and Neal was sitting in the floor gently rubbing small circles in her back.

"We need to go." Peter said softly. "Diana's going to keep an eye on Katie."

Neal stood up and followed the older man from the office. "What's up?"

"The car was found." Peter said. "About five blocks from the crime scene."

"Was it stolen?"

"Yeah, a block from the shooting." Peter answered.

When Peter and Neal made it to the car, the forensics team was already there.

"Get anything?" Peter asked.

"It's been wiped clean." One of the techs said.

"Did you check behind the rear view mirror?" Neal asked.

"No." The tech said.

"When you get into a car, you readjust the mirror." Neal said. "Sometimes after stealing a car, the thief forgets to wipe back there."

"I'll check it now." The tech grabbed his equipment and got back into the car.

"You ever forget to wipe the mirror of a car you boosted?" Peter asked his partner.

"Onc…Who said I ever boosted a car?"

"You're right." The tech said. "I found several prints; we'll let you know whose they are after we run them."

"Now what?" Neal asked Peter.

"Now we check out the auctioning company that Collins works for, see if we find out anything there."

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The auctioning company held no new clues. They found out that Maureen was a free lance auctioneer and did not have an office or any personal belongings in the building. No one there believed that she would be involved in anything illegal. They did get a name of her current boyfriend, Tony Benson. He was a photographer for a local studio.

Peter called Jones to run a check on the man, and found out that he also had no criminal record. They called the studio and learned that it was his day off, so they headed to his apartment.

Once they got there, they saw that it too was trashed.

"Looks like whoever ransacked Maureen's did a number on this place too." Peter said.

"Now we have two missing people to find." Neal said.

/

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I will have more up soon.


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry about the delay, boss had me working overtime to make up for being off today and Monday for Labor Day. If I post his address, will anyone help me egg his house?

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Peter and Neal were in Peter's office, once again going through all of the paperwork on the case. There was a knock on the door and Jones stuck his head in.

"Got a match on the fingerprints lifted from the car." He said, handing Peter the file.

"Thanks Jones." Peter said, as he took the file. Jones nodded, and then left the office.

"Simon Foster." Peter said, reading the file. "Served time for grand thief auto, assault and battery, breaking an entry, attempted murder, and a handful of weapons and drug charges."

"Any connections to Maureen?"

"Not that I see."

"Want to talk to him?"

"Oh yeah, it should be interesting."

The two men grabbed their jackets and left the office. They walked downstairs, where they saw Katie playing dolls with one of the female agents.

"Neal!" The young girl squealed when she spotted him. "Play dolls."

"Not right not, Munchkin." Neal said, gently running a hand over her head. "I've got to work."

"Play dolls." The little girl said again, pouting a little.

"I'll play later." Neal smiled.

"Play now."

"No." Neal said, his voice a little more stern.

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes!" She screamed, her bottom lip quivering.

Neal knelt in front of her and picked her up with his good arm, sitting her on his knee. "Not right not, little one." He said.

"I'm not little, I'm big girl."

"Ok, not right now big girl."

"Wanna play."

"Amy will play with you." Neal said, nodding towards the female agent.

"Wanna play with you."

"I can't play right now."

"Why?"

"Because I'm busy."

"Why?"

"Just am." Neal kissed the top of her head and sat her back on her feet. "I promise I will play later."

"Okay." Katie said, with a smile.

Neal ruffled her hair, causing her to laugh. Then he stood up and followed Peter from the room and to the elevators.

"How come you're so good with kids?" Peter asked, as they entered the elevator.

"I don't know." Neal shrugged. "Never knew I was."

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Peter and Neal walked into a rundown apartment building and found Foster's apartment, and saw that the door was wide opened. They heard noises inside. Peeking inside, they saw that the apartment was trashed.

"Stay here." Peter whispered as he drew his gun. "This is probably the same guy who trashed Maureen and her boyfriend's place."

Peter quietly walked into the apartment and followed the sounds to a small bedroom, he saw someone going through the dresser drawers.

"FBI!" Peter called out, stepping into the room and aiming his gun at the intruder. The person put their hands up and turned around. Peter was surprised at who it was.

"Tony Benson." Peter said.

"I can explain." Benson said.

"You trashed your own apartment to throw suspension from yourself." Peter said. "Nice move, it worked."

"That's not how it happened."

"Then you hired Foster to kill Katie." Neal said, walking into the room. He glared at the man angrily. "She's just a baby."

"Someone tried to kill Katie?" Benson asked, his face showed shock and horror. "Is she okay?

"Are you saying you had nothing to do with it?" Peter asked.

"Is she okay?" Benson asked again.

"She's fine." Peter said. Noticing the look of relief on his face. "Start talking."

"Can you lower your gun?"

"No."

Benson nodded and said. "I went home and found my place trashed, there was this huge man there. Had a really bad temper. He told me that he had Maureen and that he wanted a pouch of diamonds that was stol…" Benson's sentence was cut off when a bullet flew through the window he was standing by and struck him in the chest.

Peter and Neal hit the ground, Peter covering the unmoving body of Benson.

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"You think Benson was on the level?" Neal asked Peter several minutes later. The two men were in Peter's car heading towards the hospital where the ambulance was taking Benson.

"I don't know." Peter admitted. "He seemed to be."

"Someone really wants the diamonds back." Neal said. "Why don't we give them to them?"

"I'm listening."

"We put the word out that the diamonds are up for sell."

"Could work. Chances are that whoever is behind this will set up a meet, then kill the person selling the diamonds."

"Not if the FBI are close by." Neal said, figuring that it would be him pretending to sell the diamonds. "Really, really, close by. Like in my back pocket close by."

"Get the word out."

"On it." Neal said, pulling out his cell phone and calling Mozzie.

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Peter and Neal made it to the hospital and were lead to a waiting room, where they waited for over an hour. Finally a doctor walked over to them.

"Agent Burke?" the doctor asked.

"Yes."

"Mr. Benson will be fine in a few days, the bullet went straight through and did no permanent damage."

"When can we question him?"

"Not until the morning, he should sleep until then."

"Did he say anything?"

"Yes." The doctor pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. "He awoke briefly and kept repeating Maureen's in danger, gotta save her."

"I am posting an agent to his door, anyone who goes in will have to be verified as a hospital employee."

"Understood."

"Call me immediately if he wakes up."

"Of course."

Peter and Neal thanked the doctor, then left and headed back to the bureau.

/

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That night; Peter, Neal, and Katie walked into Neal's room at June's. June was out of town visiting her sister, so they figured that Neal's place could be used as a safe house for the little girl.

"I'm hungry." Katie said.

"I'm guessing you don't have any child friendly food." Peter said, looking at the younger man.

"There is some delicious Patti and caviar in the refrigerator."

"So that would be a no."

"Yeah, that would be a no."

"I'll order pizza."

"Yeah!" Katie liked the sound of that. "Pep'ronie."

"One pepperoni pizza coming up." Peter smiled at her.

"Paint." Katie smiled, running to a large canvas on an easel. "Can I paint?"

"Sure." Neal smiled.

Katie watched with interest as Neal carefully put the different colors of paint into the different holders of a paint pallet. Then he chose three brushed of different sizes and handed them to her. He laid the paint pallet on a small table beside the canvas.

"Have fun." He said.

Katie laid the brushes down, and then used her small hands to grab some paint. Then she smeared both hands onto the canvas. Then Katie grabbed more paint, mixing up the colors on the pallet.

"Next time I'll just squirt out all of the paint in a large bowl." Neal said.

Katie painted for several minutes, having a lot of fun. The young girl had more paint on herself then she did on the canvas.

"Finished." She smiled proudly at her masterpiece.

"Very beautiful." Neal told her.

"I think someone needs a bath." Peter laughed.

"Bubbles." Katie squealed.

"Let me know how the bath goes." Neal said, as he started cleaning up Katie's mess.

"No, you let me know how the bath goes." Peter said.

"I don't know how to bath a kid."

"You think I do?"

"Come on Peter."

"She likes you more."

"Everyone likes me more, but that's beside the point."

"Neal, just give her a bath."

"How?"

"Put some water in the bathtub, then use soap and water to wash her."

"But."

"Now, Neal. You're the one who gave her paint."

"I've only got one good arm, what if she slips under the water? I might not be able to….."

"Just give the kid a bath." Peter said. "It only takes one arm."

"How do you know?"

"Go."

Neal sighed, and then led the young girl into the bathroom.

/

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By the time Neal and Katie walked back into the living room, the pizza was there and Peter had the dining room table set. Both were wearing pajamas. Neal's were silk and blue. Katie's were pink and had cartoon characters on them.

"Pizza!" Katie yelled, running to the table.

"You change too." Peter said, as he picked Katie up and sits her on a chair at the table.

"Yeah, Katie likes to splash."

They ate in silence, both men wondering if any of the pizza sauce was actually going inside of Katie's mouth. Most appeared to be on her face and hands.

"Does all three-year-olds have deplorable table manners?" Neal asked Peter.

"How should I know. At this rate, she'll need another bath."

After dinner, Peter took a wet wash cloth and gently wiped the young girl's face and hands.

"There you go, all clean." He smiled at her.

"Bed time." Neal said.

"No." Katie said. "Wanna play." Then she started running around the room at top speed.

"Okay." Peter smirked.

"Peter, I'm tired." Neal said.

"Don't worry." Peter smiled, sitting on the sofa. "Let her play for a few minutes, she'll wear herself out."

"Good idea." Neal said, also sitting down.

But Peter's plan didn't work. An hour later, she was still running around playing.

"Does she ever rest?" Neal asked, after he yawned.

"I hope so." Peter answered, also yawning.

"Let's play hide and seek." The little girl said, grabbing Neal's hand and pulling.

"Later."

"Now."

"Later."

"Now!" She said, stomping her small foot.

"Katie." Neal said, sternly. "I said no."

"Please?" She asked, giving him her best puppy dog eyes. Her bottom lip quivered ever so slightly.

"Okay." Neal sighed, he just couldn't say no to that face. "Go hide."

"Okay." She giggled and ran off.

"Way to stand your ground." Peter smirked.

Neal ignored him, and stood up to find the young girl. They played for several minutes, getting Peter involved in the game also. Both men noticed with joy that she was starting to look sleepy and knew she wouldn't be awake much longer.

It was Peter's turn to find them, and he found Neal pretty easily. Then he started looking for Katie, but couldn't find her. After a couple minutes, Neal was also looking for her. It was usually easy locating her, since she had a habit of giggling while playing. But they couldn't find her anywhere and were becoming worried.

"She's got to be in here." Peter said. "I know she didn't leave the room, we would have heard the door."

"Katie!" Neal called out. But there was no answer. "Katie!"

"The terrace!" Peter exclaimed, rushing towards the opened door.

"No." Neal whispered, his face going pale. He too rushed out onto the terrace.

"Katie!" Peter shouted, franticly searching for her.

Then Neal heard a very soft noise. "Peter." HE whispers. "Shhh."

Both men listened carefully, and then heard a soft snoring sound coming from behind a small tree in a pot. They slid the potted tree over and saw the young girl curled up on the floor, sound asleep.

"I think I aged twenty years." Peter said.

"Me too."

Peter gently picked up the small girl and carried her back inside, laying her on the couch.

"She's finally asleep." Neal said. "And my bed is calling me."

"It's calling me too."

"Huh?"

"I'm too tired to even think about arguing over who gets the bed and who gets the floor." Peter said. "And we both need to stay in this room to protect Katie. So you stay on your side and I stay on my side."

"Fine, but no snoring."

"I'm too tired to snore."

/

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I promise to have more up tonight or very early in the morning. Hope you like it.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Peter and Neal awoke to the sound of a blaring alarm clock.

"It can't be morning already." Peter mumbled.

Neal mumbled something that Peter didn't understand.

"You know." A voice said from the living room. "I could have taken a picture and had blackmail material for a long time."

Peter and Neal looked at each other, then got out of bed and walked into the living room. Mozzie and Katie were sitting in the floor in front of the coffee table, both were coloring.

"How long have you been here?" Peter asked.

"Long enough."

"Moz gave me coloring books." Katie smiled.

"I knew Neal wasn't exactly set up to entertain children here." Mozzie explained, motioning toward a pile of children's toys and books.

"Thanks Mozzie." Neal said.

"Katie is a sweet kid." Mozzie said. Then he stood up and motioned for the two men to follow him to the dining room, taking a piece of paper with him. He handed Peter the paper, once they were out of earshot of Katie. It was a child's drawing of a man.

"Who's this?" Peter asked.

"The man who kidnapped Katie's Mom." Mozzie said. "She saw it, that's probably why he hired Foster to kill her."

"Too bad we can't use this to out a BOLO." Peter said.

"Did you even try to question her?" Mozzie asked.

"She's three." Peter reminded him.

"Three-year-olds are smart." Mozzie said. "And Katie is very smart. She knows how to count to five, and she knows her colors."

"How can that help us find her Mom?" Neal wanted to know.

"The man who took her is big, and has yellow hair and blue eyes. He shoved her into a green van with writing on it. She has no idea what the writing said, but she does know that the van had a big number two on it. And if you look at the picture, you will see a red line on his arm. That is a tattoo of a large red snake with black eyes."

"You got all of that from a three-year-old?" Peter asked in surprise.

"Yes."

"Are all con artists good with children?"

"I've known Neal for many years." Mozzie said. "I'm used to dealing with children."

"Hey!" Neal objected.

"Face it, Neal." Mozzie said. "You can be childish at times."

"A whole lot of times." Peter agreed.

"I'm going to change." Neal said, walking away with a small pout.

"Look suit." Mozzie said. "I want to say thank you."

"For what?"

"For helping Katie. For looking for her Mom, no child should have to go through life without a parent."

"You know Mozzie." Peter said, Neal had told him about Mozzie growing up in group homes and never being adopted. "Some couple missed out on having a pretty terrific son."

"Thank you again, suit."

"You're welcome."

/

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A little while later, Peter and Neal were in Peter's office. Jones and Diana were at Neal's watching Katie. Peter's phone rung and he answered it.

"Got a hit on that van." Peter told Neal, after he hung up. "A van was reported stolen the morning that Maureen went missing. It was a work van for a landscaping company called Murray And His Two Sons."

"Catchy name."

"The two was wrote as a number, not spelled out."

"Just like Katie said."

"Police have it in impound, it was found a couple hours ago abandoned in a vacant lot."

"Let's go." The two men grabbed their jackets and left.

When they got to the impound yard, they saw a man in his fifties arguing with the guard. Two younger men were with him.

"Look." The man in his fifties said, his voice hard. "That van is our source of income and I demand that you turn it over right now. I get a call saying my van is here, so we rush right over. Now you're telling me I can't have it."

"Mr. Martian." Peter said, walking over to the angry man. "I am Agent Peter Burke, FBI. I apologize for this, but your van is pertinent to a case th…"

"I don't give a rat's ass." Murray Martian ground out. "I want my van now."

"Mr. Martian." Neal said. "Right now there is a three-year-old little girl in our custody, her Mom was kidnapped. We believe the same person who stole your van took her, and your van may hold the clues we need to find her and reunite her with her daughter."

"Three?" Martian asked, his face and voice had softened a lot.

"Yes."

"Here's our card." The man handed Neal a business card. "Call when the van's ready."

"We will release it as soon as we are done." Peter assured him.

"Just find that little girl's Mom." Martian said.

"We will." Neal said.

"The police report said that you walked outside and the van was gone and that you didn't see anything." Peter said.

"That's right."

"Do you remember seeing a man with blond hair, blue eyes, and a red snake tattoo on his arm hanging around?"

"No."

"I do." One of the younger men said. "When Dad and Mike were inside, I was unloading some stuff from the van. He walked over and asked for directions, he was looking for Maple street. He kept glancing in the back of the van, but I didn't think anything about it."

"Have you seen him before?" Peter asked.

"No."

"Do you think you could come down to the bureau to sit with a sketch artist?"

"I can do better then that, I have his photo. But he doesn't know. We were hired to do work on this lawn and I was taking pictures of it from across the street, the man walked by as I was taking a shot. I was going to throw the picture away, he blocked the part of the lawn I needed the photo of, but I never got around to it."

"I need that photo."

"I can bring it to the bureau or fax it, either way."

Peter took out his business card and wrote his fax number on the back and handed it to him. "Fax it as soon as you can."

"We're heading back to our shop now." Mr. Martian said. "I will make sure Shawn sends it as soon as we get there."

"Thank you."

"Come on boys." Martian and his sons walked away.

The guard led Peter and Neal to the van and they started searching it, a few minutes later the forensics team showed up. Peter and Neal didn't find anything useful and left, with instructions to the forensics team to get them the results as soon as they could.

/

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Peter and Neal walked into the bureau and Jones and Diana walked over to them, Jones was carrying a file folder. After leaving the van, Peter had called them and given them the information they had. He told them to send two other agents to guard Katie and for them to come back to the bureau.

"We were just about to call you." Diana said.

"Shawn Martian faxed over the photo." Jones said. "And we found out who he is." He handed Peter the file. "Andrew Kingman."

"A very nasty fellow who is wanted in many different states for crimes ranging from petty theft to murder." Diana said.

"He is believed to be a hired hit man, but there is no actual proof of it." Jones said.

Neal's phone rung and he stepped away to answer it.

"Any leads as to where Kingman is staying?" Peter asked.

"No." Jones said. "But he likes to hang around strip clubs and street corners. I put in a call to Vice, to see if he's on their radar."

"That was Mozzie." Neal said, rejoining the group. "We got a nibble."

"Someone wants to buy the diamonds." Peter said.

"Actually, a lot of someone's want to buy them. But Mozzie's pretty good at shorting the list. A man claiming to be Frank Graft is interested, Mozzie met with him. He is a very large man with blond hair, blue eyes, and a red snake tattoo on his arm. Moz says he's too dumb to have pulled this off alone, figures there is someone pulling his strings."

"When's the meet?"

"In the morning, at nine. Central park by the large fountain."

/

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That night, Peter and Neal once again went to Neal's place. Peter knocked on the door and announced himself, then he heard the door being unlocked and it opened. Peter and Neal walked in, and could not help but grin.

Harry Banks had been with the bureau longer then Peter, and was one of the best. He could handle any situation without being fazed. But the man now looked very frazzled and on edge.

His partner, a younger man who was had just joined the bureau, looked calm and very much in control. He was sitting on the couch, with Katie in his lap, reading her a story.

"Neal!" Katie squealed, when she saw him. She jumped down and ran over to him, raising her arms to be picked up.

"Hey, Katie." Neal smiled, picking her up with his good arm and hugging her.

"Problems Harry?" Peter asked.

"She never stops." The man said. "Never."

"I know." Peter said.

"She's like the energizer bunny on crack."

"I know."

"She's calm compared to my oldest son." Nate Hills said, with a smile. "Randy's four and is constantly on the move."

"The next time you show up for work tired, claiming you didn't much sleep." Harry told his partner. "I will gladly do all of the work and let you catch a cat nap."

/

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	5. Chapter 5

A little while later, the two men and one little girl had just finished eating dinner. Neal sat on the couch, and Katie immediately climbed into his lap.

"Where's Mommy?" She asked, her eyes tearing up.

"She'll be here soon." Neal said, praying he was right.

"I want Mommy." A few tears slid her cheeks.

"I know, Sweetheart." Neal said, wrapping his good arm around the girl as she snuggled to his chest. "I know."

Neal continued to hold the girl until her breathing evened out and he knew she was asleep.

"I guess we don't get to play hide and seek tonight." Peter said, as he gently picked the little girl up off of Neal and laid her on the sofa.

"Go ahead and hide, I'll seek." Neal said, as he stood up.

"Think I'll pass."

/

/

The next morning, the FBI and Neal were getting ready for the meeting. They were inside a surveillance van.

Neal's phone rung and he looked at it.

"It's Kingman." He said.

"Put it on speaker phone." Peter instructed.

"Hello." Neal said.

"Change of plans." A voice said over the phone. "An acquaintance of mine will make the exchange."

"I don't like changes." Neal said.

"This one is unavoidable."

"Who is this acquaintance?"

"She is a lovely woman wearing a blue summer dress, you can't miss her."

"She has the money?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

Then the phone went dead.

"He's making Maureen do the exchange." Peter said. "He's probably going to be watching and listening."

"Why don't I just grab her and get her to safety?" Neal asked.

Peter rummaged around in a drawer, then handed Neal a small electronic device.

"A scrambler?" Neal asked.

"It's effective for three feet." Peter said. "Convince her quickly that you are there to help her, then get her out of there. After you convince her, turn it off so it won't interfere with our radios. I will have some agent following you and some searching for Kingman, my guess is that he will be close."

"Okay." Neal said.

Peter handed him the pouch of diamonds. "Just in case. If you have to choose between her life and the diamonds, you know the chose to make."

Neal nodded, then left the van and headed for the meeting spot. Once there, he saw Maureen. She was carrying a briefcase. As he walked up to her, he noticed that her dark sunglasses didn't cover her black eye all he way.

"You." The woman hissed angrily.

"We meet again." Neal said.

"Give me the damn diamonds."

"I work for the FBI now." Neal said. "I'm here to help."

"No." She said franticly. "Go away, please."

"I won't let him hurt you, I promise."

"He's got my daughter." She said, near tears. "Please….."

"No he doesn't." Neal said. "Katie is safe."

"What?"

"Katie is safe."

"Prove it."

"She loves pink and loves playing hide and seek. And the kid only has two gears, full throttle and fast asleep."

"She's safe?" Relief was evident in her posture and her voice.

"Yes."

"How can I trust you?"

"Sometimes you just have a little faith."

"If you are lying, I will kill you."

"I don't doubt that."

"What's the plan?"

"Where's Kingman?"

"No idea." 

"We make a run for it, we have FBI agent watching our backs."

"Okay."

Neal turned the scrambler off, grabbed Maureen's hand, and then took off running.

/

/

Peter, Jones, and Diana watched as Neal and Maureen ran. Then they saw Kingman chasing after them.

"Go!" Peter yelled into the radio.

Several agents drew their weapons and aimed them at Kingman, he had no chose but to stop and raise his hands. He knew he was caught.

"We've got him." Neal heard Peter's voice in his ear wig. He stopped running, and pulled Maureen to a stop as well.

'They've got him." Neal said.

"That's because Kingman is an idiot." A voice said. They turned and saw a middle aged man standing there aiming a gun at them. "But I'm not."

"And you are?" Neal asked, as he stepped between him and Maureen.

"Someone who wants those diamonds, and the money. And don't count on any help from your FBI buddies; I have a scrambler of my own. They can't hear you." He motioned with his gun to a parked white van. "Get inside."

Neal knew he had to do as he was told. He just hoped that the man didn't know about his anklet. Him and Maureen climbed into the back of the van, and the man followed. "Go." He told the driver, who pulled out into traffic.

/

/

"We lost all audio on Neal." Jones said, flipping switches. "It's being jammed."

"By who?" Peter wanted to know.

"Probably whoever hired Kingman."

Peter pulled out his phone and called the Marshals to get the location of Neal's tracker. He hoped that the scrambler wasn't strong enough to interfere with it.

/

/

"It was a perfect plan." The man who held a gun on Neal and Maureen said. "Hire Kingman and Foster to steal the diamonds and frame the auctioneer. It would have worked just fine if that little brat hadn't run with the diamonds; kid probably didn't even know what they were. Foster must have given them to her to play with to shut her up. He's an idiot too. But now he's dead, and you two will be joining him very soon."

"She's an innocent child." Maureen said. "And I know that she is safe, so my cooperation ends now."

"I don't need your cooperation now." The man said. "I just need a shield in case the FBI finds us."

"You have what you want." Neal said. "Why don't you let her go, you only need one hostage."

"The man with the gun gets to make the rules." The gunman said.

The van pulled to a stop in front of an abandoned warehouse and the gunman motioned for them to get out. Once out of the van, he motioned towards the warehouse. Neal and Maureen walked towards it, with the two criminals following close behind.

"FBI!" Peter's voice shouted, as the four people were surrounded by agents. "Drop your guns!"

The two men were out numbered and outgunned, so they did as they were told.

"It's over." Neal told Maureen.

"I want to see my baby."

"Of course." Peter said, walking over. "I will call the agent watching her and have them bring her to the bureau."

"I don't know how to thank you." She told the two men. "All of you."

"Come on." Neal said, with a smile. "There is a little lady who really wants to see her Mommy."

/

/

Peter, Neal, and Maureen walked into the agency.

"Mommy!" A voice screamed out.

Katie ran towards her Mom, who knelt down and held out her arms. The little girl lunged herself into her Mom's open arms and the woman stood up, clinging to her daughter tightly.

The agents in the room applauded at the scene, each thinking that this was why they chose to become agents. For happy endings like this, however rare they were.

"Maureen." She turned to see Tony Benson standing there.

"Tony." She smiled, not letting go of her daughter.

He walked over and wrapped his arms around both of them.

Neal watched the scene with a smile, a genuine one, not the fake one that he had spent years perfecting.

"Makes it all worth it, doesn't it." Peter said, standing next to him.

"Yeah." Neal agreed. "It does."

/

/

THE END

What do you think?


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